The Miami Heat suffered a heart-wrenching loss on Saturday in Game 6 of the NBA‘s Eastern Conference Finals to the Boston Celtics, and there were a couple of controversial calls near the end of the game.
Heat star Jimmy Butler was fouled while shooting a 3-pointer near the end of the fourth quarter, which led to him shooting three free throws, even though there was some question as to whether both of his feet were behind the 3-point line when he released his shot attempt.
Some also felt Butler may have committed a double-dribble violation, but a league review has resulted in the league saying that the foul call and the resulting three free throws, as well as the decision to not call a double-dribble violation, were the correct decisions.
JUST IN: NBA says everything was correct in the final 3 seconds of last night’s Celtics-Heat Game 6.
Jimmy Butler also did not double dribble, per NBA. He lost control of the ball, recovered it, and legally attempted a shot. pic.twitter.com/YxGzf2IeA8
— Andy Slater (@AndySlater) May 28, 2023
After Miami won the first three games of this series, the Celtics were thought to be done, especially after it appeared they quit in the second half of their Game 3 blowout loss.
But they responded with convincing wins in Game 4 and Game 5 to suddenly make the series a competitive one.
On Saturday, Boston led for much of the contest, and it looked like they had sewn up another win when they were up by 10 with about four minutes left.
But Butler led a Heat comeback, only to set the scene for Boston’s heroic game-winning basket with 3.0 seconds remaining.
After Marcus Smart missed a 3-pointer, guard Derrick White snaked inside for the rebound and putback just before the horn that gave the Celtics a 104-103 win.
The two teams now head for Boston for Game 7, and the Celtics are strong favorites to win and become the first NBA team to win a playoff series after trailing it 3-0.
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